Ella Dubose, a 70-something Southern lady, has been a Charlotte resident for almost a half a century, but she left some part of her heart in her hometown of Charleston, South Carolina. When her younger children start to pester her about her her driving and her health (they thinks she’s getting senile), Ella takes off for a small inn at Myrtle Beach. There she reflects on her early life in South Carolina, especially her relationship with the man who might be the father of her eldest son. She summons that son to join her at the inn. Will she have the courage to tell him about her early life, or will the prospect of a romance with another guest at the inn turn her mind to happier things?